Paul McCartney Says ‘Future of Music Is in Danger’

Paul McCartney is supporting the U.K. Music Initiative, a new Parliamentary campaign that hopes to save music venues from closing.

According to NME, the “Agent of Change” principle is being targeted for U.K. law, and would force developers to consider the effect on pre-existing businesses before they construct any new buildings. Existing music venues would fall under this umbrella.

The campaign – introduced by senior Labour MP John Spellar as a new Planning Bill in the House of Commons – launches today, and McCartney has come out in full support of it. “Without the grassroots clubs, pubs and music venues my career could have been very different,” he said. “If we don’t support music at this level, then the future of music in general is in danger.”

Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason and singer-songwriter Billy Bragg have also backed the U.K. Music Initiative.

In other McCartney news, he's apparently working on the follow-up to 2013's New. He recently noted that he's "putting the finishing touches" on a new album, which he hopes to release sometime this year.

"I’d like that to be something I really love and then hopefully the fans will love it too," he said. "I would like to achieve making that a really great album. Fingers crossed! That’s not what it’s called, but fingers crossed! It could be … it could be the new album title."

McCartney has been busy since the release of New. He released a Top 5 single with Rihanna and Kanye West in 2015 called "FourFiveSeconds," and worked on some other tracks with West during that period.